Rockies Place German Marquez, Raimel Tapia On IL
The Rockies announced that they’ve placed right-hander German Marquez and outfielder Raimel Tapia on the 10-day injured list. The club recalled lefty Phillip Diehl and righty Joe Harvey from Triple-A Albuquerque in corresponding moves.
Marquez is heading to the shelf with inflammation of his pitching arm, which will cut off a second straight impressive season for the 24-year-old. Marquez amassed 230 strikeouts and logged a 3.77 ERA over 196 innings last season, which helped the Rockies to the playoffs and earned him a five-year, $43MM contract extension in April. Neither the out-of-contention Rockies nor Marquez have reached that form in 2019, but he has nonetheless been formidable. Marquez has fired 174 frames of 4.76 ERA/4.06 FIP pitching with 9.05 K/9, 1.81 BB/9 and a 49 percent groundball rate.
Tapia’s down with a left hand contusion, but unlike Marquez, he hasn’t established himself yet. Through 393 plate appearances, the 25-year-old Tapia’s a .295/.326/.440 hitter. That looks good on paper, but with park factors in the mix, it only adds up to an 82 wRC+/83 OPS+. Tapia has also struggled to minus-4 Defensive Runs Saved and a minus-4.9 Ultimate Zone Rating in 746 innings divided among all three outfield positions this season. The package has been worth minus-0.5 fWAR, making Tapia one of the least valuable major leaguers of 2019 by that metric.
Brandon Nimmo Nearing Return
Injured Mets outfielder Brandon Nimmo could rejoin the club “by the end of the week,” Mike Puma of the New York Post relays. In the meantime, he’ll try to play consecutive full rehab games at Triple-A Syracuse.
Nimmo entered the year as an integral piece for the Mets, but he has since underperformed while dealing with a bulging disc in his neck. The 26-year-old only batted .200/.344/.323 (87 wRC+) with three home runs in 161 plate appearances before going on the injured list on May 22. Just last season, Nimmo slashed .263/.404/.483 (149 wRC+) and swatted 17 HRs in 535 PA to serve as one of the majors’ premier hitters and seemingly establish himself as one of New York’s top players.
To the Mets’ credit, they’ve certainly survived without Nimmo. The team has overcome no shortage of adversity in recent weeks to climb back into the National League wild-card race. Although the Mets are coming off a three-game sweep at the hands of the division-rival Braves, they’re still 67-63 and within a manageable two games of the NL’s second wild-card spot. The Mets are in this position thanks in part to outfielders J.D. Davis, Michael Conforto, Jeff McNeil and Dominic Smith. But McNeil’s also needed in the infield, while the injured Smith hasn’t played in a month, which could make Nimmo an important reinforcement for the Mets as they try to break a two-year playoff drought.
Adam Jones Plans To Keep Playing
Longtime Orioles center fielder Adam Jones was among many 30-somethings who went through a difficult winter in free agency prior to this season. Even though he’s a five-time All-Star and a highly respected veteran leader, Jones had to wait until March to land a contract. He wound up joining the Diamondbacks on a $3MM guarantee, and though the 34-year-old Jones hasn’t logged great (or even average) production since then, the soon-to-be free agent doesn’t seem interested in calling it a career.
As part of a piece that’s worth reading in full, Jones told Zach Buchanan of The Athletic (subscription required) that he’s “perfectly OK” with playing less than he used to, when he was good for 145-plus games on a near-annual basis from 2010-18. Jones’ wins above replacement total in those days tended to range from two to four, but the current version simply isn’t that player anymore.
Jones has essentially been a replacement-level performer this year, according to both FanGraphs (0.2) and Baseball Reference (0.0), having hit .267/.316/.427 with 14 home runs in 454 plate appearances. Jones’ wRC+ (89) is his worst since 2008, his first full season, though he has improved as a defender since moving from center field to his new home in right this year. With minus-1 Defensive Runs Saved and a minus-0.2 Ultimate Zone Rating, the four-time Gold Glove winner has been close to a neutral defender this season – not the overwhelmingly minus fielder he was during his closing years in Baltimore.
Although Jones hasn’t been a defensive albatross this year, he still may have trouble securing a guaranteed contract in the offseason. He had substantial difficulty last year on the heels of a better offensive season, after all. Regardless, having earned just under $100MM in the game (per B-Ref), Jones “figures he can now afford to be picky” when it comes to finding his next deal, Buchanan writes. Jones isn’t closing the door on his Arizona tenure, though, telling Buchanan, “Here would be a great place” to continue his career. Jones believes he’s still capable of being “very, very productive in this game for a few more years,” so it doesn’t seem retirement is on his mind at this point.
Athletics To Select Seth Brown’s Contract
The Athletics are set to select the contract of first baseman/outfielder Seth Brown from Triple-A Las Vegas, Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle tweets. The club already has a full 40-man roster, so it’ll need to make a corresponding move.
The 27-year-old Brown will take the 25-man spot of outfielder Stephen Piscotty, who’s going on the injured list. Brown is now set for his major league debut four years after joining the Athletics as a 19th-round pick in 2015.
Currently in his first year of Triple-A ball, Brown is among many Pacific Coast League hitters who have feasted on opposing pitchers. He has mashed a whopping 37 home runs in 500 plate appearances at the level this year. The lefty-swinging Brown’s power has helped him to a terrific .297/.352/.634 batting line, which is 25 percent better than the league-average output, per FanGraphs’ wRC+ metric.
Braves Activate Dansby Swanson
The Braves have activated shortstop Dansby Swanson from the injured list and optioned outfielder Adam Duvall to Triple-A Gwinnett, the team announced.
Swanson’s back after missing just over a month with a right heel issue. The former No. 1 overall pick had been amid his best season when he went down July 23, as he owns a .265/.330/.468 line with 17 home runs, seven stolen bases and 1.8 fWAR in 431 plate appearances.
Swanson’s absence initially led the Braves to turn to Johan Camargo as a fill-in at short, but the latter’s struggles have continued over the past few weeks. Likewise, fellow backup Charlie Culberson has gone through a brutal month at the plate, so Atlanta went outside the organization for help at the position Aug. 16, signing well-regarded defender Adeiny Hechavarria after the division-rival Mets parted with him. Hechavarria has been highly effective during his short Braves tenure, which has helped the NL East leaders to eight straight wins, but he’ll slide into a reserve role now that Swanson’s returning.
The 30-year-old Duvall began his major league season in white-hot fashion when the Braves recalled him from Gwinnett a month ago. The two-time 30-home run hitter smashed five dingers in his first six games after his call-up, but his bubble has burst since. With just one HR over the past three-plus weeks, Duvall’s line has sunk to .241/.289/.494 across 90 PA, owing in part to ugly strikeout and walk percentages (32.2 K%, 4.4 BB%).
Minor MLB Transactions: 8/26/19
The latest minor moves from around baseball…
- Former major league utilityman Ty Kelly retired over the weekend, he humorously announced on Twitter (h/t: Jon Heyman of MLB Network). Kelly ended his career as a member of the Angels’ Triple-A affiliate in Salt Lake after signing a minor league contract with the organization last winter. A 13th-round pick of the Orioles in 2009, Kelly ultimately saw major league action with the Mets and Phillies from 2016-18 – a 188-plate appearance span in which he batted .203/.288/.323 and racked up time at first, second, third and all three outfield positions. The 31-year-old wrapped up his Triple-A tenure with a .268/.368/.382 line across 2,353 trips to the plate.
Pirates To Prioritize Catcher Position In Offseason
After he endured a concussion-marred few months, the Pirates released veteran catcher Francisco Cervelli last week. Including Cervelli’s numbers prior to his Pittsburgh exit, he and the Pirates’ current catchers – Elias Diaz and Jacob Stallings – have combined to record some of the lowliest production of any group of backstops in the league this year. Their minus-0.6 fWAR and 65 wRC+ each rank just 26th in the majors. With that in mind, general manager Neal Huntington will enter the offseason seeking help behind the plate, though he realizes it’s going to be difficult to find a solution.
Huntington told Rob Biertempfel of The Athletic (subscription) that “catching is the hardest position to come by,” adding: “We’ll take a look at what’s available in a trade and the free agent markets this offseason. And, hopefully, we’ll continue to push the guys who are here forward.”
Cervelli’s slated to hit the open market again after a few months with his new team, the Braves. The Pirates will “keep the door open” to re-signing him, according to Huntington, but Biertempfel points out that a reunion looks unlikely. Indeed, Pittsburgh would be hard-pressed to count on Cervelli again considering his meek 2019 output and extensive concussion history.
Turning to other free-agent possibilities, the small-budget Pirates don’t seem likely to pursue current Brewer Yasmani Grandal – who’s a strong bet to rake in the largest contract among available catchers over the winter. There will be some other potentially appealing choices who could come at affordable prices, though, with Jason Castro (Twins), Travis d’Arnaud (Rays) and Robinson Chirinos (Astros) among them. At least offensively, all three have logged better-than-average numbers this year with their present teams. As noted earlier, that hasn’t been the case for Diaz and Stallings.
It’s all the more damning for Diaz that he hasn’t made up for his subpar offense (64 wRC+) with stellar work behind the plate. While Diaz has caught a league-average 27 percent of would-be base-stealers, he ranks dead last out of 104 catchers in Baseball Prospectus Fielding Runs Above Average metric and has accounted for minus-18 Defensive Runs Saved. Stallings has been vastly superior in those categories (54% CS, 17th in FRAA, 8 DRS), not to mention with the bat (85 wRC+).
The soon-to-be 29-year-old Diaz and Stallings (30 in December) are without minor league options, making it eminently possible at least one won’t be with the Pittsburgh organization in 2020. However, in an ideal world, the Pirates will possess “three or four” viable backstops next year, Huntington said. The club does have two Triple-A catchers, Steven Baron and Christian Kelley, but the two of them have posted horrid numbers in the minors this season. That should further put the onus on Huntington to find outside help at the position in the coming months. Huntington suggested it’ll be a challenge, but the woeful production of the Pirates’ 2019 catchers means he won’t have a high bar to clear when it comes to landing an upgrade.
AL Notes: Rays, O’s, Alberto, Tigers, Hardy
Let’s kick off the week with updates on a trio of American League clubs…
- The wild card-contending Rays haven’t set specific timetables for the returns of injured starters Tyler Glasnow, Blake Snell and Yonny Chirinos, but the three figure to come back in that order, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times writes. Glasnow, who has been out since early May with a forearm injury and will finish 2019 as a reliever, could rejoin the team in the second week of September, per Topkin. Meanwhile, Snell is “probably 10 days behind [Glasnow] at least,” according to manager Kevin Cash. Snell, the reigning AL Cy Young winner, underwent arthroscopic surgery on his left elbow a month ago. Chirinos has been down for three weeks with an inflamed right middle finger – an injury that has thrown a wrench into a solid season for the 25-year-old.
- Utilityman Hanser Alberto was waiver fodder last offseason, switching teams on multiple occasions before finally settling in with the Orioles for good in March. Since then, the 26-year-old has enjoyed what has easily been a career season. He’s slashing .314/.337/.440 with 10 home runs in 432 plate appearances, and the right-hander been downright dominant against lefties – whom he has victimized for a .402/.422/.540 line over 180 PA. A .446 batting average on balls in play has buoyed Alberto’s numbers versus southpaws, though, and Statcast isn’t really buying into his above-average production. Nevertheless, he’ll garner trade interest in the offseason, Roch Kubatko of MASNsports.com hears. It’s up in the air whether the O’s will strongly consider moving Alberto, who has played second and third with regularity this year and will enter arbitration for the first time in the offseason.
- Tigers lefty Blaine Hardy‘s season came to an end two weeks ago when he underwent a platelet-rich plasma injection in his elbow. Looking ahead to the offseason, Hardy realizes his Tigers tenure could conclude next. “You know and I know I might not be in Lakeland next year,” the 32-year-old told Chris McCosky of the Detroit News, referring to the team’s spring training home in Florida. Hardy has been a fairly successful reliever in Detroit since he debuted in 2014, but after elbow issues helped limit him to a 4.47 ERA/5.72 FIP with 5.89 K/9 and 2.64 BB/9 in 44 1/3 innings this year, it’s possible the Tigers will non-tender the soon-to-be out-of-options hurler as he readies for his second trip to arbitration. Regardless, Hardy’s glad he decided to call it a year instead of trying to gut out his elbow problems through the season. The Tigers were on the verge of demoting Hardy to Triple-A Toledo before his PRP injection, leading him to tell McCosky: “I had so many people in my corner say it would’ve been career suicide if I decided to go down to Triple-A and keep pitching through this. If something happened, and they found the tear at Triple-A, it would have been hard to retro it back to a big-league deal.”
Health Notes: Carrasco, B. Lowe, R. Hill, Tigers, Mariners
The Indians and right-hander Carlos Carrasco are gaining hope he’ll be able to help their bullpen this year, Ryan Lewis of Ohio.com reports. Carrasco’s amid a remarkably encouraging recovery from leukemia, an illness that put a stop to his season in late May. Since beginning a rehab assignment at the Double-A level, the 32-year-old has tossed 2 2/3 innings of no-hit, five-strikeout ball, showcasing solid velocity in the process. The Indians will now move Carrasco’s rehab stint to Triple-A Columbus, where he’ll throw around two innings Sunday, according to manager Terry Francona.
- Rays infielder Brandon Lowe‘s season is seemingly over, but he’s not giving up on a return, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times relays. Lowe, who has dealt with shin and quad injuries over the past couple months, explained Friday that he’s aiming to rejoin the Rays during the postseason. A playoff berth isn’t a certainty for the Rays, but at half a game up on the AL’s top wild-card spot, they’re on track to earn a spot. Although he hasn’t played in a while, Lowe’s among the reasons for the club’s success. The 25-year-old rookie wrapped up his regular season with a terrific .276/.339/.523 line, 16 home runs and 2.5 fWAR in 307 plate appearances.
- Dodgers lefty Rich Hill will throw a bullpen session Saturday for the first time since landing on the IL on June 20 with a flexor tendon strain, Jorge Castillo of the Los Angeles Times tweets. Hill estimates he’ll rejoin the Dodgers’ staff in two weeks, per Castillo, though it’s doubtful he’ll start for them again this season. The 39-year-old could at least be an asset out of LA’s bullpen heading into the playoffs, however.
- The Tigers have placed utilityman Niko Goodrum on the IL with a left groin strain, the team announced. Goodrum, one of the few reasonably effective hitters in the Tigers’ lineup, has put up a .248/.322/.421 line with 12 homers and a dozen stolen bases across 472 plate appearances. Not only that, but the versatile 27-year-old has totaled double-digit appearances at first, second, short and in the outfield.
- The Mariners have shut outfielder Mitch Haniger‘s rehab down temporarily as he deals with a back issue, according to Greg Johns of MLB.com. It’s a new injury for Haniger, who suffered a ruptured testicle June 6 and hasn’t suited up for a major league game since. He appeared in three rehab games before the back problem cropped up.
Latest On Steve Pearce, Steven Wright, Heath Hembree
Injured Red Sox first baseman Steve Pearce and knuckleballer Steven Wright have barely been factors this season, which now looks likely to go down as a lost year for both players. It’s “doubtful” either will take the field again in 2019, according to Chris Cotillo of MassLive.com.
It’s hard to believe 2019 has been so dreadful for Pearce, one of the main heroes of the Red Sox’s championship run a year ago. The midseason trade acquisition was an offensive force with two teams (Boston and Toronto) during the regular season and continued his torrid pace in the playoffs, earning World Series MVP honors for the Red Sox’s five-game triumph against the Dodgers.
As great as Pearce was in 2018, he only appeared in 76 games then. This season, thanks largely to a lower back strain that has shelved him since May 31, Pearce has played in a mere 29 contests. When he has entered the batters box, the once-potent Pearce has slashed a miserable .180/.245/.258 with one home run and a microscopic .079 ISO in 99 plate appearances. That obviously isn’t what the Red Sox had in mind when they re-signed Pearce to a $6.25MM guarantee last November. Considering his meager production since inking that deal, free agency certainly won’t be as kind to the 36-year-old Pearce during the upcoming offseason.
The Red Sox can still control Wright next year, his last season of arbitration eligibility, but he has joined Pearce in enduring a nightmarish campaign. Wright began the year serving an 80-game suspension after a failed PED test, thus keeping him from debuting until late June, and then went on the IL in mid-July with a right foot contusion. The 34-year-old right-hander – a former All-Star – has thrown 6 1/3 innings this season and allowed six earned runs on 11 hits (including three home runs) and four walks.
In better news for Boston, there’s a “good chance” righty reliever Heath Hembree will pitch again this season, manager Alex Cora told Cotillo. Hembree went down with an elbow strain Aug. 2 – the second time the joint forced him to the IL in 2019. The elbow problems have helped lead to middling results for Hembree, he of the 4.06 ERA/4.91 FIP with 10.75 K/9, 4.3 BB/9 and a paltry 21.8 percent groundball rate in 37 2/3 innings.